Pakistan continues to face terrorist attacks which add to its economic and political woes. The latest incident occurred when six soldiers were martyred during a terror attack in North Waziristan. The proscribed TTP claimed responsibility for the attack and said it ambushed two military vehicles.
Earlier week, a bomb explosion hit a vehicle transporting labourers to a check post in North Waziristan, killing 11 people. A suicide blast last month at the JUI-F rally in Bajaur killed 54, although it was blamed on an Afghan affiliate of the ISIS terror group. Many soldiers have laid down their lives in recent skirmishes and terror attacks.
Pakistan has called on Afghanistan’s rulers on numerous occasions to reign in the terror group which continues to attack inside the country. Last month, Pakistan’s special representative for Afghanistan Asif Durrani visited Kabul and shared Islamabad’s concerns about cross-border attacks. The Afghan Taliban have not acted on these concerns so far.
The Afghan Taliban have been in control of Afghanistan for over two years. Pakistan initially supported the new rulers but relations are increasingly fraught after the recent string of terror attacks. Pakistani officials have blamed the Taliban for not doing enough to control the movement of armed groups from crossing the porous border and preventing the use of Afghan soil.
There has been no respite in the violence in Pakistan with the TTP launching more than 90 attacks in July alone. It is perhaps the ideological alignment or the historical linkages that some members of the Afghan Taliban have sympathies with the TTP. Nevertheless, Pakistan’s frustration with Afghanistan is justified as the neighbouring country has become a safe haven for terror groups.
Pakistan is keen to reengage with the United States to deal with regional threats. The TTP will be a major concern from a counter-terrorism standpoint. The US has said it retains the right to protect American interests in the region and doesn’t depend on the Taliban’s promises to keep terrorists out of the country. It needs to see how the Afghan authorities react to the Pak-US rapprochement.
The new caretaker prime minister stated that Pakistan will continue to fight extremism, radicalization, and intolerance as surrender is not an option. He said war fatigue is out of the question as the terrorists are fighting a nation, not just the armed forces. Pakistan needs a definite strategy to deal with the situation or war against terrorism will continue to impact the region.
